DC Government

Mayor Gray and Council Members Arrested to Protest Budget

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user thisisbossi, Andrew Bossi

Bossi writes:

In response to the Congressional budget debacle which proved that DC is but a colony — prone to being singled out unlike any other city in the country — a number of activists, elected officials, and general citizens came out in force upon the grounds of Capitol Hill.

The crowd first formed on the sidewalk, but after some opening remarks by elected officials and activists: they quickly spilled into the street. The Capitol Police had been on hand & I’d thought it amusing that a couple were taking photos & videos… it wasn’t until I saw the wristbands come out when I realised these weren’t officers enjoying the moment; they were recording evidence.

With many minutes of warning, large portions of the group shifted over the sidewalk; whilst a core of dedicated supporters — including our Mayor, a number of councilmembers, and members of DC Vote — remained behind to block the roadway. The officers began to surround the group & repeated their warnings to get back on the sidewalk or face arrest.

Now in all fairness to the Capitol Police: they were doing their job. They were quite courteous about it & the protest was similarly jubilant right back. One woman was first to be bound, soon followed by several other activists. Then came Muriel Bowser: first councilmember to be arrested.

In general, I tend to dislike political grandstanding… but this was different. If our council was being arrested by our own police, I’d think it a cheesy photo op… but now our locally-elected officials were being arrested by the very forces we were out to protest: the Feds. This wasn’t a mere photo op arrest; this was actually a legitimate arrest… the kind of thing that goes on your record; the kind of thing you spent a night in jail for.

Now granted, I don’t expect anyone will be in jail longer than tomorrow; I’d be surprised if any were still locked up by midnight tonight. But it was Councilmember Bowser’s arrest which really hit a moment… you could see the look on her face was of some worried concern: someone who had never been arrested before & didn’t show up here today expecting to be arrested. As she was placed into the police van: her look of concern changed to a bit more worry. I mean this as no knock against Councilmember Bowser’s committment; rather I felt it really help to humanise the entire event. It made me respect her all the more.

Yvette Alexander stood right beside us for quite some time, complicated in that she didn’t have her ID on her. While it was entertaining to see our top officials being frisked, it was also quite entertaining that our easily-recognisable councilmember needed her ID… prompting a standerby to call one of her staffers with the best introduction I’ve ever heard over a phone: “Hi, your councilmember has been arrested.” Also, kudos to Councilmember Alexander for going to jail in high heels!

There is a lot I can complain about with the council in general; and certainly with individual councilmembers & even the mayor. Heck, that’s what politicians are for: you’re not supposed to always like them. But this was an opportunity to set aside some of those issues (frankly, I’d say DC was glad to have a unifying moment after the past couple weeks) and cheer on our own brothers & sisters as they stood up in support of our rights.

It was certainly a proud moment to be a DC resident and a fine boost to our collective esteem after several weeks of turmoil within our local & federal levels of government. It’s aggravating that my support for small & local government is inhibited by those in Congress whom advocate small & local government. If I wanted to live in a colony, I’d have moved to Williamsburg.

What do you think the Mayor and Council Members should do next?

Shutdown Avoided with DC Riders Attached to Budget

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user Brandon Kopp

The Post reports:

The spending deal agreed to Friday night to avert a government shutdown includes a provision banning the District from spending its own funds to provide abortions to low-income women as well as funding to continue a controversial school voucher program.

Leading Democrats said repeatedly in the hours leading up to the deal that they would not accept a larger prohibition on federal funding for Planned Parenthood, and they appear to have been successful in that goal. But District activists have feared for weeks that Democrats might concede on the D.C. ban in order to pave the way for excluding the Planned Parenthood ban.

@mayorvincegray tweets:

“Anti-DC-autonomy riders on budget bill on abortion rights, vouchers shameful violation of our right to govern ourselves.”

Dear PoP – Utility Pole Leaning

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user fromcaliw/love

“Dear PoP,

My house abuts and alley and I have a utility pole on my property line that is leaning. It sways on windy days and isn’t really in danger of falling…yet, but its slowly breaking my fence and its again impacted by me neighbors large tree that also sways in the wind so both cause my cable to go out in high winds. I have contacted the 311, the utility commission, comcast, and verizon to no avail in the past 3 months. Any suggestions from readers on what to do? Right now its leaning at around 25 degrees onto my fence.

BTW does anyone else hate comcast and their phantom charges? My bill went up from 58 dollars to 180 dollars and I now get random charges for telephone taxes of 10 dollars ( I don’t have a telephone and the service isn’t listed on my bill )”

Would this be a Pepco situation? I would def. contact your council member for advice as well. Anyone ever dealt with utility pole problems before?

Dear PoP – More Graffiti Problems

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

Just a heads up on the Graffiti Removal Program under Fenty. When someone tagged buildings in the past, you just needed to call 311 and Fenty would have it removed within a day. This was great because when graffiti is not removed immediately, a “tag war” often occurs where a competing vandal then tags the building, and so on. As always, the Fenty administration was extremely responsive whenever we called. We have called three times in the last 2 weeks about the graffiti in our alley (and yes, a tag war has erupted by now) and were finally told today that “The Mayor’s Office no longer removes graffiti.” I’ll leave the editorializing about Gray to the commenters….”

In early Feb. I asked if DC’s graffiti problem had reached epidemic proportions? Unfortunately, I don’t think the question can be debated anymore. Unfortunately I hear some of these jackasses who are doing the tagging don’t even live in DC. Anyway, have others noted a more difficult process to have graffiti removed?

Dear PoP – Blight in Brightwood Remains, Revisiting 809 Kennedy St, NW

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

809 Kennedy St, NW was on PoP here, a year ago.

While the disgusting flow of water did get resolved, the property is still a shoddily-fenced disaster — huge pits full of stagnant water, a wasteland of mud and debris. And it’s been like that forever. Again, it’s slightly better than it was in that PoP post from a year ago (chain-link fence surrounds it, and the piles of debris got a bit smaller, it’s not quite as smelly), but it’s worse than an eyesore, it’s dangerous and depressing.

Is there anything residents can do about properties like that? Or is it, since it’s private property, OK by the city as long as their taxes are paid?”

We need to get DCRA and Ward 4 Council Member Bowser’s office to follow up on this property. Since there doesn’t seem to be an actual property on the property – does anyone know how this affects how it gets taxed? Do you guys have any other suggestions on how to remove this blight beyond contacting DCRA and CM Bowser’s office?

Dear PoP – Unresponsive 911 To Incident at 13th and T St, NW

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user Mr. T in DC

“Dear PoP,

I’m writing because I’m incredibly concerned about the responsiveness of 911 dispatchers in my neighborhood after an incident Saturday afternoon on 13th Street, NW, between S and T. I was packing some boxes at home when I heard a loud crashing sound from the street and looked out my window to see several cars stopped in the middle of the road. Thinking it was a minor traffic accident, I went back to packing until I heard loud shouting and screaming coming from outside the window. I looked out to see that the situation had quickly gotten out of control, with a young woman screaming in the face of another driver and a small group of men forming around them. Someone was tossing things from another’s car and realizing that this was looking to turn into a fistfight at any minute, I called 911 to report the incident.

I was told by the dispatcher that she had already taken another call from someone else about situation and that I should tell her when punches are thrown so she could make note of it once the police showed up. Thinking this was an outrageous response, I explained to the dispatcher that it was a volatile situation and was deteriorating pretty fast – things could easily have gotten violent (not to mention these cars were parked in the middle of 13th Street and could cause more accidents).

Still after over a half hour, no police car has shown up and those involved are hashing it out. The situation was left to devolve because of a lack of responsiveness from the 911 dispatcher and the unresponsiveness of the police. Following the violent attack on two residents in the alley behind 13th Street a few months ago, my understanding was that the police were going to be more active in patrolling this area and had promised to become more responsive.

Since last summer, there have been several fights and assaults in front of the Whitelaw Hotel apartments and other low-income housing that borders our street. It’s very disconcerting and a shame to think that police have already lost interest in keeping this neighborhood safe. I’d be interested to know whether other readers of yours have had a similar experience with unresponsive 911 dispatchers.”

Dear PoP – Southwest Circulator Route and other Changes

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user fromcaliw/love

“Dear PoP,

You’ve probably already heard, but the Convention Center to Southwest Waterfront Circulator route is in danger of being terminated. A new “Priority Plan” recommends that the route end for two years and a new route be added in 2012. This Circulator route directly connects the hotels in the Convention Center area to Southwest Waterfront and provides a really important economic boost to the Arena Stage, Southwest marina and the few new businesses that have begun opening in the area. The city has invested millions of tax payer dollars in Southwest Waterfront’s revival – ending a key transportation source will seriously undermine the economic growth spurred by that investment.

If readers want to submit their comments in support of maintaining the route, they can do so on Circulator’s website here.”

Hmm, according to the press release below it looks like there will still be SW service.

From a DDOT press release:

On April 1, 2011, the DC Circulator will implement service changes affecting the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route, the Union Station-Navy Yard route, and the Convention Center-SW Waterfront route. Public notice of these changes was made on March 2 and a public meeting was held to discuss them on March 17. Details of the changes are as follows:

  • All service will end on the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route. Last year, an average of 2,427 passengers per month – fewer than 11 passengers an hour – utilized this route. The District was subsidizing each passenger an average of $11.50 per trip and has decided to end the service because it did not meet ridership or financial targets. (All historic ridership metrics can be found on our performance measures dashboard located at circulatordashboard.dc.gov.) Visitors to the National Mall should consult GoDCGo.com or the Metro Trip Planner at wmata.com to discover alternative public transit options in the National Mall area.
  • Savings gained from ending the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route will be reinvested to extend hours on the Union Station-Navy Yard route, providing a great travel option for evening activities on Capitol Hill and in the Capitol Riverfront area. Beginning April 1 through September 30, 2011, this route will operate Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and on Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
  • On Nationals home game days, the Union Station-Navy Yard route will continue to operate later into the evening and on Sundays in order to transport fans to and from baseball games. A 2011 baseball schedule with Circulator service hours can be found at DCCirculator.com under the “Where We Go” tab.
  • In the Southwest Waterfront area, service will be moved off Water Street, SW and onto Maine Avenue, SW, a very short distance away. Circulator stops will move to Maine Avenue at 7th Street, SW and Maine Avenue at 9th Street, SW. This change is made necessary due to pending construction of the Washington Kastles stadium on Water Street that will narrow traffic lanes.

You can see the full plan in pdf below:

Circulator-Transit-Development-Plan_Draft-Final_3-23-11

Dear PoP – Non Residents are Paying to go to DC Public Schools

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user rpmaxwell

“Dear PoP,

We live in Brookland, where Noyes Elementary is the assigned elementary school for our child. With the recent test cheating scandal, we are even more grateful than ever that our child was lucky enough to win an out-of-boundary spot at one of the few good DC elementary schools. Some of our neighbors have not been so lucky. Given the limited number of good elementary schools in the city and the limited number of out-of-bounds spots in each school, I find it very upsetting when I drop off or pick up my child from school to see numerous parents whose cars have Maryland license plates.

Some of these parents are likely sending their children to this school illegally, which I understand the district has policies in place to prevent. That is of course, annoying, but it is the parents who are in the wrong. But we were very surprised to learn that other parents are actually paying non-resident tuition for their children to attend the school.

According to the school district’s website, non-resident parents “may pay non-resident tuition to enroll in a DCPS school where space is available.” We don’t have a problem with that generally speaking. But it appears that the district is giving spaces to non-resident tuition payers even when there is a long waiting list of DC residents who applied via the out-of-boundary process to these schools. Shouldn’t these spots go to DC residents first, and then if (and only if) there are no remaining DC children who want to attend a particular school, be opened up to non-resident tuition payers?”

Holy cow. Did anyone else know this takes place? Does it make sense?

DDOT: New York Avenue to Lose One-Third of Lane Capacity on/about April 25

By Prince Of Petworth


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From a press release:

Mayor Vincent C. Gray today warned District residents, workers and visitors that upcoming construction work on New York Avenue, NE could have a significant impact on traffic in this heavily-traveled corridor. On or about April 25, weather permitting, New York Avenue commuters will encounter a one-third reduction in lane capacity between Penn Street, NE and Florida Avenue, NE. The reduction from six to four lanes is unavoidable for the next two phases of construction for the District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) rehabilitation of the aging New York Avenue Bridge over the railroad tracks.

“There’s no other way to do it – this aging structure needs to be replaced for the safety of everyone who crosses it and for the rail traffic underneath,” said Mayor Gray, “But I don’t want to understate the impact of taking away two lanes: there will be backups and it will take you significantly longer to get down New York Avenue until this project is completed.”

DDOT estimates commuters can expect delays of 15 to 30 minutes in the project area for the duration of the lane reductions, which are anticipated to last approximately two years.

“DDOT understands how sizeable the impacts will be in this busy corridor due to the required closures for this project. To help ease travelers’ pain, several steps have been taken, including offering real-time traffic and project updates, identifying alternate routes, and debuting a transit incentive program that will encourage commuters to try alternatives,” said DDOT Interim Director Terry Bellamy.

To help travelers cope with the change, DDOT is activating a series of tools:

Continues after the jump. (more…)

Dear PoPville – New speed camera installed on Military Road

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80

“Dear PoP,

In light of your popular post about the Porter Road speed trap:

While riding the E bus across to Friendship Heights, I noticed a construction crew working on eastbound Military Road near the eastern side of the Rock Creek Park ravine. The backhoe was making what looked like a single car length cut in the curb and were preparing to pave the grass over with a patch of concrete. The small construction site had the same size and orientation as the existing speed camera setup on westbound Military just past St. John’s College Prep, where a marked or unmarked police car with camera setup sits just past a 25 MPH sign. (For reference, this is the same thing that was installed on both directions of North Capitol Street near the Irving Street cloverleaf in the past year or so.)”

Heads up!

You can see a full list of red light cameras here and speed cameras here.

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